Chapter 274: Putting to Use

Yin Shu pondered for a long time, but in the end she still didn't dare to mention her absurd idea to Chen Wuji.

If this young lord who looks very cold-hearted governs the army strictly, her shameless proposal of such a thing would definitely get her beaten to death.

Although her intention was merely to do what she could to repay the kindness of not being killed.

Her body is now something she despises the most, and also something she couldn't care less about.

She had heard that in the army, many generals would bring along military concubines to ease the hardships of marching.

That's when she came up with the idea.

But looking at Chen Wuji's demeanor, it seems this young general doesn't have such thoughts.

Perhaps he despises her…

Yin Shu, feeling somewhat vexed, wandered back and forth outside Chen Wuji's tent.

Until she saw soldiers bringing back many wild fruits, and suddenly her eyes lit up—this was something she could do.

She then hurried inside to tell Chen Wuji her idea.

She was very worried that this young, cold-hearted general would think she wanted to flee and refuse, or send someone to watch her.

In the end, he simply waved his hand casually and let her go.

This made Yin Shu suddenly feel uneasy about this young general.

Her identity should still need to be confirmed; how could he so readily let her act freely?

But she didn't dare say those words, leaving only with many thoughts and doubts.

What Yin Shu didn't know was that someone had been watching her ever since she left, observing her every move.

Chen Wuji's suspicion of a stranger didn't dissipate so quickly.

The people of the plateau's branches were all so honest, yet they were actually still under surveillance.

Lax on the outside, tight within; letting them be is how to find a handle.

As evening approached, Chen Wuji took a dozen or so archers from the clan troops out for a trip, wandered the nearby hills, caught some game, and gave everyone an extra meal that night.

During the hunt, he suddenly had a brainwave, thinking that hunting was a good opportunity to train his archery.

His archery skills were honed in just such hunt-like combat practice.

Live targets are harder than dead ones, but improvement comes faster.

With that idea, he arranged training for the archers the next day.

All outposts were fully staffed, with plenty of manpower.

These archers could completely devote half a day to training, then take over night watch from others in the evening.

Thanks to this training, the soldiers' meat rations visibly grew abundant.

Each day the big pot could stew several kinds of meat; the soldiers eating it were all smiles, and nobody complained about the harsh mountain conditions.

Chen Wuji led the archers up the mountain for three days of training, then let them practice on their own while he left the mountain camp under the protection of Wushuang and Chen Bang.

Accompanying him back was also Yin Shu.

As for this woman, Chen Wuji could only temporarily place her beside Qin Zhanhong.

Yeniao Shan Zhuang would guide the Qiang people as collaborators; they would inevitably have a battle, and Yin Shu's thorough knowledge of Yeniao Shan Zhuang made her very useful.

Chen Wuji's return to the village was delayed by two days compared to the plan; by the time he got back, Xu Zengyi had already arrived.

Upon entering the village, Xiong Paozi told Chen Wuji that the mysterious mastermind had arrived, loafing around the village streets.

This old fellow had arrived the day before yesterday.

Clearly, his daily work at the coffin shop was boringly repetitive, just hammering out coffins over and over.

But once he reached Xishan Village, he couldn't stay put.

He spent all day going from house to house.

The households of other surnames in the village had nearly all been visited by Xu Zengyi over these two days.

When Chen Wuji heard the news and found him, this old fellow was visiting Yuan Youwei's home as a guest.

Since Yuan Laoer's death, Yuan Youwei had become honest and obedient.

Earlier, when the villagers clamored to settle accounts with Chen Wuji and demand compensation, several elders of the Yuan family showed up, but Yuan Youwei never appeared at all.

Chen Wuji swaggered into Yuan Youwei's house, shouted for Yuan Youwei's young son to bring him tea, and walked straight into the main room.

On the main room's aged, heavily patinated couch, Xu Zengyi and Yuan Youwei sat facing each other across the couch, appearing to chat happily, both faces full of smiles.

Seeing Chen Wuji enter, Yuan Youwei sprang up nervously, "Wuji… you… how did you come here?"

"Have a seat." Chen Wuji waved his hand, then bowed his fists to Xu Zengyi, "Sorry to keep you waiting, sir."

"It hasn't been that long; I never told you when I'd come, you have your own affairs, you couldn't possibly spend all day in the village waiting for me—no need for such politeness." Xu Zengyi laughed, saying, "This time coming back from the mountains, did you run into any yellow weasels?"

"This time I really did, I brought it home." Chen Wuji said.

Xu Zengyi clapped his hands and laughed, "Good, I've been waiting for your yellow weasel so long my hair's almost fallen out; good thing it's timely—let's go."

Saying this, he rose and patted Yuan Youwei's shoulder, "Little Yuan, think over what I just said; for us folks, speaking plainly means we're all eating from the same pot."

Yuan Youwei repeatedly agreed, lowering his attitude to the utmost.

Chen Wuji, though a bit curious about what Xu Zengyi was up to, didn't speak right away; only after leaving Yuan Youwei's home did he ask, "I've heard you've been staying as a guest in the village these days—anything going on?"

"What do you think of the other surnamed folks in the village?" Xu Zengyi countered.

"If things stay peaceful and they're willing to obey my orders when needed, things can stay as they were before and continue to be so. But if they cause trouble for me, I don't mind turning Xishan Village into a Chen family stronghold." Chen Wuji said.

Chen Wuji had considered this matter several times already.

He had once thought of pulling the villagers in to work together, but after thinking it over, he discarded the idea.

These villagers, poor as they are, excel at scheming and stirring up trouble.

The clan troops' hearts are not yet united; they're in a rather scattered state, and mixing in these troublemakers would likely cause problems every few days.

His current attitude is simply to observe how the villagers behave.

Anyone with a bit of sense, seeing the Chen Family mustering Bīngmǎ and building fortifications, will surely notice something.

Those willing to believe the Chen Family will come of their own accord; those who don't believe or don't care can just go their way.

But if someone hard-headed still wants to cause trouble, Chen Wuji can only courteously send them to the Western Heaven; there's no other alternative.

"Your attitude like this probably won't work." Xu Zengyi shook his head. "These people ought to be put to use."

"In my eyes, these people are just rat droppings; there are plenty who see profit and forget righteousness. I fear they'll spoil my good pot of soup." Chen Wuji said, "My time is limited; I don't want to keep playing this tug-of-war game with them."